


playing amina el maghrabi, las vegas, 1966 // daisy alone

by lonelyheartsclub_com



Category: Murder Most Unladylike Series - Robin Stevens, The Queen's Gambit (TV)
Genre: F/F, Queen's Gambit AU, amina's benny and daisy's beth, damina has their dynamic, i don't ship them but
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-16 21:27:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29582331
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lonelyheartsclub_com/pseuds/lonelyheartsclub_com
Summary: daisy wells is an astoundingly good chess player. she's a prodigy. the year is 1966, and there's a chess tournament and a chance to overthrow the us championship player amina el maghrabi. it doesn't at all go to plan.
Relationships: Amina El Maghrabi/Daisy Wells
Kudos: 6





	playing amina el maghrabi, las vegas, 1966 // daisy alone

**Author's Note:**

> tw // death, hepatits (lucy stans i'm sorry)

Daisy could hear the clock ticking. 

She'd always hated the sound. It put her on edge, jarred her focus, and so there she was sat, opposing Amina El Maghrabi, the clock ticking putting her off. But it wasn't just the clock ticking that was putting her off. It was every little sound. The child in the back crying. The young boys in the parlour playing about and running. And Amina's gaze. 

Amina reached out to start Daisy's clock and stop her own. Daisy could feel panic rising up in her throat as she inspected the board. She had no idea what to do. Ever since Felix had taught her chess down in that dingy orphanage when she was eight, she'd been able to see boards in her head. Imagine her opponents next move. But Amina played moves she'd never seen before, played fronts she'd never even heard of. 

Daisy did not know what to do, and that terrified her, because she had worked so hard to get where she was today, and she was not prepared to give it all up because of one person.

Amina was pretty, she supposed. 

Dark hair that glistened in the low Las Vegas sun. Brown eyes that glittered in the soft light of the room they were playing in, which was crowded by reporters and others. Light brown skin that Daisy had the oddest thought about. She dug half moons into her palms and mentally chided herself, because she knew thoughts like the ones she was having were unnatural and disgusting. 

"Move, Wells," she muttered, and reporters snapped pictures. 

Daisy was in a corner. Amina's bishop was in a very risky position, and Daisy could take it to prevent danger, but her castle and all her other pieces were far too valuable. Amina had broken down her main defences, and she had almost no pawns left. The US Championship player had taken her second bishop swiftly and without mercy, and now Daisy was starting to realise where this would go. 

She was going to lose. 

She made a simple one step forward move, and Amina moved closer to her king. 

_This was it,_ Daisy thought. _This is where every tournament I've ever won is wasted._

It was all a blur from here on out, really. Amina edging closer and closer to her king. Daisy trying to make simple moves to take her pawns and forgetting to record them. Daisy's hand edging closer and closer to tipping her king over. Amina trying to take pity on her and make it easier. 

"Is this where the great Daisy Wells' chess reign ends?" the commentator called out. 

Daisy tipped her king over and gritted her teeth, putting out her cigarette and leaving in almost an instant, rushing off after shaking Amina's hand in the name of civility. 

"Mama, I can't believe that I let her defeat me like that! I'm going back over my former moves, and-" Daisy started rambling to her adopted mother, Lucy Mountfitchet. Lucy hadn't said anything since Daisy had returned, and she turned to face Lucy. She had flopped back onto the bed, right next to her adoptive mother. 

Her mother had gone stiff and cold, and Daisy looked her in the eye. 

She was unseeing. 

Lucy had died. 

Daisy scrambled to go call hotel service as quickly as possible.

"I'm very sorry for your loss, Miss Mountfitchet-Wells. We suspect it was hepatitis." the hotel manager started. Daisy looked down at the floor. 

Daisy could feel her heart dropping. "Yeah, those martinis must've...had an effect." 

Out past them wheeled a stretcher, and Daisy had the urge to follow it. 

Daisy had lost her chess prestige, and she'd lost her mother. And she hadn't even been there to say goodbye to her mother, or help her. The ambulance drove off, and the hotel manager began to speak about expenses. 

Daisy was alone, even though she could still hear the clamour of people around her.


End file.
